We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Courtney Hammonds a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Courtney, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

I consider myself to be a courageous leader who is not afraid to take risks. Such a character trait is evident in the fearless achievements I managed in my former role as the academic fashion director. Such developments included the expansion of new academic programs including The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fashion Design (BFA). This signaled a pivotal direction for the institution as the fashion design program was at the forefront of recent programs and technologies in the southern region. Such kinds of developments depict me as a bold decision-maker and a prompt executor who understands what I want to do for organizations.

Courtney, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am absorbed in what my (golden girls) my mother, her two sisters and my maternal grandmother, Mattie Mae Hammonds, taught me about walking in my authenticity. In fact, I learned style and fashion from my grandmother and her friends (male and female) when they would wear their finest hats and clothes every Sunday at church. As well, the idea of a perfect day was to watch Style with Elsa Klensch.

Equally, I always had a longstanding love of European culture and the cross-fertilization of fashion, art, poetry, and life. When I was five, I moved to Berlin, Germany with my mother and stepfather. This was my gateway to the world outside of Columbus, Ga. This move fostered my appreciation for what was happening in the world of fashion, what was happening in the world of art.

Hertes a brief trajectory of my professional journey:

Following a career as a classroom teacher then serving as the Assistant Human Resource Manager for Neiman Marcus, the world’s leading multi-brand luxury retailer, I served 8 years as Academic Dean of the School of Fashion at The Art Institute of Atlanta where I successfully brought together creativity, communication, business, and innovation.

I now spend my time advising brands, companies, fashion weeks and governments. I’ve been Identified as one of the key voices of global fashion by The St. Lucia Fashion Council and Startupbootcamp Fashtech Milan.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

One of my goals as a fashion consultant is to help brands create niches. One of the fundamental principles of effective branding is for fashion brands to diligently select a profitable segment that they can then target through an enticing positioning. Although this general principle is universally applicable, luxury brands are substantively different from other brands.

For example, the Comme des Garcons brand is known for embodying avant-garde fashion, with many of her wildly creative outfits looking like dynamic sculptures. Items include fringed blazers, mini dresses made of black taffeta, and wool sweaters with the brand’s Play logo, which is a heart with eyes. Although the brand began by specifically targeting the ultra-high end, mobile professionals that cared for a high-quality product, over the years, it has gradually expanded its brand architecture scope with different products and slightly broader customer segments.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

I’m a big fan of non-fiction — documentaries, biographies, and history. I really admire the writers who can tell these stories so well that they captivate as well as well-done fiction. Stories about political figures and presidents, cultural icons like Andre Leon Talley, civil rights protesters, and more teach are both humbling and teach me about how leaders deal with great times of change.

History doesn’t repeat itself, but history rhymes. It’s important to me to leverage lessons that come out of the past to do better moving forward. Learning from these major figures gives me insights into how I work and live.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.imdrcah.com
• Instagram: @imdrcah
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drcah/

Image Credits
Amelia Jackson Photography